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Title: The Second World War by John Keegan ISBN: 0-14-011341-X Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: September, 1990 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $20.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.26 (39 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Fantastic Narrative
Comment: Keegan provides an excellent narrative of a topic that is almost too big to include in one volume. He organizes the book into six parts, each covering a specific time frame and theatre of war (e.g., The War in the East 1943-1945). In each part he provides the reader with a description of important events, as well as "tidbits" of his own analysis. I found these "tidbits", where Keegan provides commentary on the usefulness of a particular strategy, long-term effect of a battle, etc., the most enlightening aspect of the book. I was frustrated by the lack of depth in the book, but I suppose that in a one-volume history one can expect only so much. I recommend this book for readers who have never read anything on World War II, or those who are interested in "brushing up" their general knowledge. If you are looking for detalied description and analysis of specific World War II events you should search elsewhere, but for a single volume general history Keegan's work is excellent.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Terrific Thematic Approach to Understanding WWII!
Comment: While I do not agree that this is the single best one-volume treatment of World War Two available, I do agree it is a wonderful, eminently readable, and fascinating thematic approach that helps the reader look at the basic overarching themes to found in WWII. The introduction explaining how and why world wars became possible and attractive is worth the price of the book alone. Only Keegan could bring so much style, verve, and new perspective to such a widely covered subject as the Second World War. Therefore, understanding that the book is not an exhaustive and comprehensive history of the war on a battle by battle, theater by theater approach as one can find in other excellent one volume books such as Gerhard Weinberg's "A World At Arm" or Williamson Murray and Allan R. Millett's "A War To Be Won", it is still a singular tome with a unique and valuable perspective on the war that any self-respecting student of the war will not want to miss.
Also, given Mr. Keegan's mastery of the written word and his way with a phrase, this is a book one lets drag on as you read it slowly, stopping to think about what he has just written in a particular paragraph and what it means. This is indeed great stuff! The book is organized chronologically but devotes specific chapters in the general narrative to particular important factors influencing the progress and direction of the war effort, such as the nazi bombing campaigns, the Allied war air over Germany, war production, organized resistance in occupied countries, and the various types and relative successes associated with espionage.
Keegan's ability to marshal a stirring and articulate argument is unparalleled, and he relates the opposing forces' war strategies with an authority no one else can match. He also appreciates the many different levels of contribution to the overall war efforts ranging from unique leadership characteristics of specific individuals such as Montgomery, Patton, Eisenhower, and Marshall, but also pays attention to the massive contributions of ordinary soldiers, sailors, and war production civilians who made important efforts aiding ultimate victory. This is a very well-written and meticulously researched and documented book, and one I am glad to have on my World War Two bookshelf!
Rating: 3
Summary: Well-written WWII introductory opus, but watch for flaws....
Comment: The Second World War was the largest, bloodiest conflict in history. It was fought on three of the seven continents and involved every major power of the time. Some of the combatant nations (most notably France and Italy) changed sides at least once between 1939 and 1945, and by the time Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945 over 50 million men, women, and children were dead, millions more were wounded and/or uprooted, homeless, and bewildered by the war's effects. Indeed, those of us now living in the early 21st century are still living with the aftermath of World War II; many of the crises we now face can be traced to decisions made during or shortly after the war.
John Keegan's The Second World War is a one-volume general history of the 1939-45 conflict, and it should be read more as an introductory text rather than a comprehensive "this-is-the-book-that-explains-the-whole-darned-thing" opus. It's too short (595 pages, not counting the bibliography or index) for that. Instead, it is structured in six parts, starting with Hitler's early campaigns in Poland and the West in 1939-40 and culminating with Japan's surrender in midsummer of 1945. Each part is divided into a few chapters that focus on themes and strategies...with attention given to a particular type of warfare in form of an example. For instance, for "Air Battle," Keegan cites the Battle of Britain. For "Airborne Battle," he uses Crete as his centerpiece.
The book is strongest when Keegan goes into detail about such things as the evolution of armies from the 19th century until the war starts in September 1939; he is particularly adept when explaining the revolutionary changes in European military organizations, particularly after the integration of the railroad and mass-production techniques from 1860 on. Keegan takes a potential snore-inducing subject -- Surplus and war-making capacity, say -- and makes it interesting to the average reader. His experience as an instructor at Sandhurst and his writing skills allow Keegan to weave a coherent narrative tapestry that depicts World War II in all its terrible yet mesmerizing spectacle.
As good as this book is, it is not without its flaws. Perhaps his research assistants blundered on occasion, or the publisher's deadline loomed too near when Keegan completed The Second World War, but I spotted a few errors of fact or terminology. In Part V: The War in the West, Keegan writes this about Operation Market-Garden: "Market, the seizure of the bridges at Eindhoven and Nijmegen [in Holland] by the American airborne divisions, proved a brilliant success. Garden, the descent of the British 1st Airborne Division on the more distant Rhine bridges at Arnhem, did not." In fact, Market was the code name given to the entire airborne half of the operation, while Garden referred to the British ground force (XXX Corps) assigned to relieve and reinforce the paratroopers. In another chapter, Keegan labels the SS mobile task forces used to round up and execute tens of thousands of Jews in the East with the term Sonderkommando. This, too, is inaccurate. The German SS units Keegan writes about were called Einsatzgruppen. Sonderkommandos were Jewish concentration camp inmates given the awful duties of emptying the gas chambers and crematoria in such hellish places as Auschwitz and Treblinka. Obviously, few books ever escape the odd typo or small factual error, but there are enough of these gaffes to distract or confuse the reader.
Nevertheless, John Keegan's book is worth reading, flaws and all.
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Title: The First World War by John Keegan ISBN: 0375700455 Publisher: Vintage Books Pub. Date: 16 May, 2000 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: A History of Warfare by John Keegan ISBN: 0679730826 Publisher: Vintage Books Pub. Date: November, 1994 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: The Face of Battle by John Keegan ISBN: 0140048979 Publisher: Viking Press Pub. Date: July, 1995 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: The Mask of Command by John Keegan ISBN: 0140114068 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: January, 1989 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: The Price of Admiralty: The Evolution of Naval Warfare by John Keegan ISBN: 0140096507 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: February, 1990 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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